1
as in geek
a person slavishly devoted to intellectual or academic pursuits
was such a nerd in college that she spent Saturday nights at the library
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in intellectual
a person with strong intellectual interests
an unlikely romance between a nerd and a campus beauty queen
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in cerebral
much given to learning and thinking
a fringe party of nerdy political activists who have no chance of getting elected
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of nerd
Bailey Berg, AFAR Media, 30 Apr. 2025
Sometimes, filmmaking can really be an excuse for nerds to research stuff.
—Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 29 Apr. 2025
Think of it as the social network for nature nerds.
—Sean Greene, Los Angeles Times, 25 Apr. 2025
Luck is the scion of the football program, a lovable nerd who happened to be the best quarterback in football, aka the perfect Stanford athletics niche: smart and good.
—Chris Branch, New York Times, 1 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for nerd
Noun
However, arguably the best amenity for aviation nerds is the view of the runway.
—Bailey Berg, AFAR Media, 30 Apr. 2025
Sometimes, filmmaking can really be an excuse for nerds to research stuff.
—Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 29 Apr. 2025
Think of it as the social network for nature nerds.
—Sean Greene, Los Angeles Times, 25 Apr. 2025
Luck is the scion of the football program, a lovable nerd who happened to be the best quarterback in football, aka the perfect Stanford athletics niche: smart and good.
—Chris Branch, New York Times, 1 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for nerd
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nerd
Noun
-
There’s a noticeable pride Morot takes in touring me around his geek’s paradise: a two-level office crammed with shelves of scowling latex heads, furry creatures and a pair of giant gators overlooking it all.—
Joshua Rothkopf,
Los Angeles Times,
14 May 2025
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There were kind of two tracks at the time: There was Das Keyboard, aimed toward the more professional programmers and the geeks, and then the gaming keyboards.—
Zackery Cuevas,
PC Magazine,
10 May 2025
Noun
-
The 20th-century German-Jewish political philosopher escaped the Nazi Holocaust, and won regard as one of the world’s greatest public intellectuals at a time when few women were appointed to university faculties.—
Kim Samuel,
Scientific American,
16 May 2025
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As Chu sees it, intellectuals have confused the state’s real obligation to be neutral—to not arrest or deport people for their political speech—with a critic’s imaginary obligation to pretend art is politically neutral.—
S. C. Cornell,
New Yorker,
2 May 2025
Adjective
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Once at the hospital, the man was diagnosed with having a cerebral stroke, the lawsuit said.—
Jennifer Rodriguez,
Kansas City Star,
13 May 2025
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The humor was of the cerebral, physical, cynical and quite often gallows varieties, but always heartfelt.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
8 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Nerd.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nerd. Accessed 29 May. 2025.
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